Even if Seraphic Fire does not win either of the Grammy Awards it is being considered for Sunday, the performances the concert choir is giving this week of J.S. Bach’s Mass in B minor are nothing less than a milestone in South Florida culture. Not everything was perfect Friday night at All Saints Episcopal in Fort Lauderdale for the first of the three performances of the Mass, … [Read more...]
FGO production makes a strong case for ‘La Rondine’
The soprano who created the role of Magda in Giacomo Puccini’s La Rondine said late in life that the composer died “with the wound of ‘Rondine’ in his heart,” having never gotten over the opera’s mixed record of success and failure. In its first-ever mounting of the bittersweet opera Puccini wrote for a Viennese commission, Florida Grand Opera has taken an important step … [Read more...]
PB Opera opens 50th season with beautiful ‘Butterfly’
In the world of Madama Butterfly, it’s all about her, with the occasional supporting character coming in now and again to move the plot along. But Palm Beach Opera’s current presentation of Giacomo Puccini’s Japanese opera is noteworthy for the strength of its supporting cast overall, and with a fine performance at its center plus a tasteful, intelligent staging, this … [Read more...]
Miami City Ballet bringing varied dance quartet to Kravis
For three weeks about three months ago, the Miami City Ballet played Paris to loud, raucous standing ovations. One lasted a full 10 minutes, according to founding artistic director Edward Villella. To Villella, and many of his dancers, this was a defining point in his career. One of the programs that brought down the house at the Paris Opera will be performed Friday at the … [Read more...]
PB film and Boca arts fests OK partnership under one board
Two of the largest South Florida arts events – the Palm Beach International Film Festival (PBIFF) and the Festival of the Arts Boca – are forming a partnership to create one large comprehensive festival of the cultural arts incorporating film, music, dance, books and authors. The boards of the Schmidt Family Centre for the Arts and the Festival of the Arts Boca have signed a … [Read more...]
Seraphic Fire opens Boca series with heartfelt Victoria, Monteverdi
A vivid reading of a madrigal sequence by Monteverdi and a heartfelt performance of a Victoria hymn stood out Thursday night as the Seraphic Fire chamber choir opened its new series of regular performances in Palm Beach County. In its 10th season, Patrick Dupré Quigley’s professional chorus has arrived at an enviable place in South Florida musical life, having grown steadily … [Read more...]
Lynn Phil’s Mozart, Mahler mark important step forward
Since the Florida Philharmonic’s disappearance eight years ago, the local listener’s need for big orchestral ensembles has been filled by guest orchestras from outside Florida or overseas, the New World Symphony orchestral academy in Miami Beach, and the larger college groups such as the Frost Symphony at the University of Miami. Although Palm Beach County has several fine … [Read more...]
Norton unveils a congenial set of changes
“Visitor experience” is a phrase one hears a lot these days when museums are the topic of discussion. Now, more than ever before, many, as a direct result of cuts in government funding for the arts, are focusing on how to make changes that keep people coming back to the museum because it is an enjoyable place to be. This can also mean that museums must now find ways to … [Read more...]
Lighthouse ArtCenter looks to emerging artists
When Nicholas Whipple was looking for a venue to showcase his light sculptures, he put out feelers to galleries in the Wynwood section of Miami. Luckily for Whipple, 28, of Hobe Sound, a set designer and master carpenter at the Maltz Theatre in Jupiter, he found a space closer to home. In an exhibit opening Friday, Next Wave: Emerging Young Artists, the Lighthouse ArtCenter … [Read more...]
Seraphic Fire’s wonderful ‘St. John Passion’ sets landmark
It’s true that the Miami-based concert choir Seraphic Fire is a national organization that draws many of its singing members, as well as the personnel for its Firebird Chamber Orchestra, from across the country. But it is also nevertheless true that on Saturday night in a church in Fort Lauderdale, a large audience saw a South Florida musical organization that was able to … [Read more...]